Sand delivery nozzle assembly



y 5, 1965 H. KILGORE 3,185,512

' I SAND DELIVERY NOZZLE ASSEMBLY Filed p ,1965 2 Sheets-Sheet 1 INVENTOR. Harry A. Ki/gare May 25, 1965 H. A. KILGORE SAND DELIVERY NOZZLEASSEMBLY 2 Sheets-Sheet 2 Filed Sept. 30, 1963 INVENTOR Harry A. Ki/gareNm 0n Om Qv g mm ATTORNEY which undertlieiinfluence of slightly high uoperating; operjatingufluid" pressure expands; to dislodge. heobstructionsandforce themthroughgoonstrictions; Isu ch -that: engagementwith the constrictions disintegrates- I the obstructing materialsotheytm'ay easilyrexit the nozzle. '1 3 ferred embodiment of the.invention. H FIGURE 3 is a cross-sectional. assembly view of anembodiment of the invention. L" V I FIGURE 4 is a plan view ofamodificationofa resil 3,185,512 SAND DELIVERY NOZZLE ASSEMBLY Harry A.Kilgore, Elmhurst, Illl; assignor to General Delaware.

{ Filed Sept. 30, 1963, Ser. No. 312,542

Motors Corporation, Detroit, Mich a corporation of 5 ll Claims. or. 291+United St te Pat Q.

This invention relates to a sand delivery nozzle assentbly fordischarging-sand onto a railwayrail and more particularly to a sanddelivery nozzle-incorporating means todischarge material" obstructing owthrough the interior'ft-l-iereof while also ii moving ice from thenozzle.

exterior. g s p Considerable work has been done in the past to preventformation of obstructing material in or to provide: means for removingobstructions from sand delivery nozzles as commonly used on railwayvehicles to maintain trac This obstruction usually results from-freezingWater and sand beingagglomera'tedwand compacted to "form a pelletobstructing.

None of the structures de tioti between the wheels and rails;

flow. through: the nozzle.

{thereby providing a fluid sealed coupling; The nipple i rrrember ltlrcan be integral with guide member 2 or at- I v Z Referring now to FIGURE1 of the drawings, a sand delivery nozzle'assembly N is shown adjustablymounted uponapivotal lever L adjacent railway wheel W. The

nozzle assembly'N can be positioned to discharge sand upon rail R toprevent slippage between wheel Wand the rail as needed. i

With reference to FIGURE 2, nozzle assembly N incorporates a guidemember 2 which supports a nozzle '4 havinga resilient sleeve 6 attachedtl1ereto.- The resilient sleeve fi c omprises a fasteningportion 8 whichis l folded over machined surface 9 of a' hose coupling nipple member 10as indicated. 'Hose nippleg lli contains grooves 12 over whichare'inforced rubber hose 14 is disposed "and clamped by conventionalclamping means 16 so that material of the hoselm'ember 14 flows intogrooves 12 tach'ed by any conventional means as; indicated by Welds 18.v

-Nozzle member 4 comprises a lip or sleeve portion 20which" overlapsguide member grooves 22 and is rigidly'clamped' to' the guide member byconventional clampveloped asiaresult of this work: has overcomethis'pr0b lem; therefore, the purpose of thislinvention"is-to provide areliable sand: delivery nozzle "which efficie'ntly removesobstructionstfrom. itszfiow. path. Y i w Accordingly among the objectsof this invention are I the provision of asan ci delivery no'zzleassemblywhicb positivelydislodgesv and breaks up obs-tructionssthatmay"formrwithin its: flowl path; the provision of a sand delivery ;nozzle;which effectively rmovesflice" from its'exterior p and the provisionjof a. sand delivery nozzle which con structed and.positioned'to.hinderkntrance ofiwater which can freeze andobstruct the fiowthereithrough.

The aforementioned objects are accomplishedby pro viding a: nozzlehaving anexpandable sleevemember,

The nozzle assembly also incorporates a fiuidzpressurej chamber which ispressurized and expanded outwardly to.

remove ice from its exterior surface. This assemblyis? furtherrdesignedto. include hnyorifice "of a particular configuration and is formed of"a length sufficient to a prevent outside water from entering theassembly'toan extent. the above objects; cannot. be accomplished. I

Referring now to-thetdrawings in which. like reference numeralsdesignat'e likeparts throughoutthe figures there- -of= and'wherein: w s9' FIGURE 1. isja plan view of sand delivery nozzle of thepresentinvention: mounted" adjacent, a railwayloco -i motive wheel. s A pFIGURE 2- is a crosseseotional assembly view'of: a.pre

ient sleeve utilized in the invention;

FIGURE 5-' a plan view of another inodificationfof the resilient sleeveincorporated in= the inventioni FIGURE 6 is a cross-sectional assemblyview ofthe preferred embodiment s'hownainitFlGUREfii'furtherillustrating the resilient sleeve in: an expanded? operational position;

FIGURE 7 is an end view of FIGURE 2 illustratingaaprcferredconfiguration Off the nozzle Orificez x I 3 showingone 70FIGURE 8-is an end view of FIGURE configuration of ithe nozzle orificeFIGURE-9 is a-partial cross-sectional assembly view' of "a "modificationof the invention; i

ing means 24 such zthat portions of lip member 20 flow into grooves 22toalso provide a fluid tight connection. The nozzle member 4 rfurthercomprises a groove 26 I which receives a ring 28 for purposes which willbe discussed=in detail later in the specification.

7 An annular nozzle: chamber 3llis formed by'the lip 20 and sleeve 6foran also later described purpose;

, Asiis; readily .apparent from FIGURE 2, nozzle 4 in conjunction.withuesilient sleeve member 6 provides a fluidlpassage 32' through theassembly. .sleeveimeniber 6 comprises integral supports 34 which Theresilient are positioned to define annular spaces 36 between guide"memberz and the sleeve 6. .Guide member 2 is provided with an aperture38 which: threadably receives a vent Y FIGURE'3 illustratesamodification of the subject invention wherein guide member 2 is modifiedtocomprise amachined surface 42 which receives a conventionalclamping'means l that retains sleeve fasteningfportion 8 of sleevemember 6. Grooves 44 are provided in surface 42 so that clamping member16 is readily effective to secure theparts in place. resilient sleevemember 6 does not comprise any integral. support surfaces and portion 8does not overlap the guide member.

With reference to FIGURES, 4 and 5, further embodimentsof resilientsleeve 6 are illustrated wherein a helical,

supporting surface 46- is shown in FIGURE 4 and a sleeve member 6comprising bulbous supporting projectio'ns ld isshown in FIGURE 5.

shown as assembled. In this embodiment theguide mem- 1 ber 2 is'composed of a flexible but relatively stiff mate rial comparedto that ofsleeve 6 andcould. be constructed from a section of'conventionalreinforced or wire wound hose. The only requirement is that the guidemember must be stiff enough to rigidly support the areas where sleeve 6engages its interior to provide the desired constrictions in the sleeve.In this arrangement nozzle 4 Patented May 25, 1965' In this embodiment,the

3 is bonded to guide member 2 at 60 and is secured to nipple by clamp62.

In operation, the sand delivery nozzle assembly N receives a. supply ofsand and air through the reinforced rubber hose 14- and operates withsleeve member 6 in a normal position as illustrated in FIGURES 2 and 3until an obstruction occurs in fluid passage 32. Presence of anobstruction in passage 32 can be sensed by any conventional means thatis capable of actuating a system to supply hose 14 and nozzle assembly Nwith a fluid having a significantly higher pressure than that utilizedduring normal operating conditions. Injection of this higher pressurefluid expands the resilient sle/eve member 6 as illustrated in FIGURE 6.

With particular reference to FIGURE 6, it is noted that the sleevesupports 34 engage the interior surface of guide member 2 such that thesleeve is expanded into annular spaces 36. Any pressure or any airexisting in the annular spaces 36 is forced through vent conduit 46 sothat the sleeve member 6 is free to move to its expanded position. Itthis condition sleeve member 6 comprises a plurality of constrictions 50which are created at each of the sleeve supports 34. The sleeve expandsat 52 between these constrictions and can engage guide member 2 asshown. Nozzle member 4 comprises the previously mentioned groove 26which receives metallic spring ring 28 to support the nozzle and providea further constriction St The higher air pressure present in conduit 32dislodges clogged objects or obstructions in the flow line and forcesthem progressively through the constrictions 50. Application of thehigher fluid pressure initially dislodges the obstruction by eitherexpanding the sleeve or by forcing it through a first constriction andthen propels it downstream in a tumbling fashion into and through theremaining constrictions 50. Fluid flow in expanded portions 52 tumblesthe obstruction against the next succeeding constriction in anon-aligned manner and forces it through such that it is partiallydisintegrated. Therefore, it is apparent that as a relatively solidobstructing object is moved through the successive constrictions 50, itwill eventually be disintegrated to a size capable of being dischargedthrough nozzle orifice 54.

It should be noted that the overlapping sleeve fastening portion 8 is insubstantial axial alignment with the thickness of hose nipple 10 both ofwhich comprise a predetermined dimension such that a snug sliding fit isobtained between portion 8, nipple 10 and the reinforced rubber hose 14.A fluid tight connection between the hose and the nipple implementsexpansion of the sleeve so that a flow obstruction may be eflicientlyremoved.

Nozzle chamber 30, which is disposed between nozzle lip 20 and sleeve 6immediately adjacent the terminating downstream end 58 of guide member2, is formed so that the presence of the higher air pressure withinpassage 32 results in lip annular portion 56 being expanded outwardly toremove any ice present on the exterior surface of the nozzle.

From the above description, it is obvious this invention affords a sanddelivery nozzle construction which readily removes material obstructingflow through the nozzle as the resilient sleeve member is expandedwithin a rigid guide member and the obstructing material is forcedagainst and through a series of constrictions in a pistonlike manner tocompletely disintegrate and discharge such material. Expanded portions52 of sleeve 6 define barrellike chambers which create turbulent fluidflow so that the flow obstruction, when loosened, is tumbled to engagethe constrictions in a non-aligned manner. The impact of the obstructionagainst the constriction and the subsequent forcing of it therethroughassures suflicient disintegration for easy discharge through the nozzle.The subject nozzle assembly is readily attached to a railway vehicle anddoes not involve any abnormal supporting problems. As illustrated inFIGURE 1, the nozzle assembly N is of sufficient length to prevent waterentering and extending the entire length of the resilient sleeve toprevent initial dislodging. It is significant that this nozzle not onlyprovides a positive means of removal of the matter obstructing flowwithin the nozzle, but it also incorporates an effective means forremoving ice from around its exterior discharge area.

I claim:

1. A sand delivery nozzle assembly comprising a rigid guide member, anozzle member having a resilient sleeve member connected thereto, saidsleeve member extending through said guide member in spaced relation toform an annular chamber therebetween, first fastening means sealinglysecuring the end of said sleeve remote from said nozzle member to saidguide member and a supply conduit, and second fastening means sealinglysecuring said nozzle to said guide member so that said resilient sleevemember may be expanded to dislodge flow obstructing particles fromwithin said sleeve.

2. A sand delivery nozzle assembly as described in claim 1 wherein saidresilient sleeve member comprises a plurality of spaced outwardlyextending support members on its outer surface which engage said guidemember when said sleeve is expanded.

3. A sand delivery nozzle assembly as described in claim 1 wherein saidnozzle member comprises expansion means to remove ice from the exteriorthereof.

4. A sand delivery nozzle assembly as described in claim 1 wherein saidresilient sleeve member comprises a helical outwardly extending supportmember along the length of its outer surface which engages said guidemember when said sleeve is expanded.

5. A sand delivery nozzle assembly as described in claim 1 wherein saidnozzle member contains a reinforcing ring.

6. A sand delivery nozzle assembly as described in claim 1 wherein saidguide member comprises a vent conduit.

7. A sand delivery nozzle assembly as described in claim 1 wherein saidresilient sleeve member comprises a plurality of bulbous support memberson its outer surface which engage said guide member when said sleeve isexpanded.

8. A sand delivery nozzle assembly as described in claim 1 wherein saidnozzle member comprises an elongated oval discharge orifice.

9. A sand delivery nozzle assembly comprising a resilient sleeve member,a nozzle having an elongated oval orifice attached to said sleevemember, a rigid guide member disposed about said sleeve member, a hosecoupling member secured to one end of said guide member, said hosecoupling member having an annular portion of re-' duced outer diameterat its free end to receive a folded over portion of said resilientsleeve member so that a supply hose may be snugly received thereover, alip portion of said nozzle overlying the other end of said guide member,said lip portion and said sleeve member defining an annular chamberadjacent the nozzle end of said guide member, means sealingly clampingsaid lip portion to said guide member, said nozzle member having anannular groove formed therein, a support ring disposed in said nozzlegroove, a plurality of support members attached to the outer surface ofsaid sleeve member and engaging the inner surface of said guide member,said support members and said nozzle support ring forming a plurality offlow constrictions when said sleeve member is expanded, and a ventconduit attached to said guide member relieving pressure from theexterior of said sleeve member whereby the application of apredetermined fluid pressure expands said sleeve member between saidsupport members and forces flow obstructions through said supportingmember constrictions so as to disintegrate the obstructions fordischarge through said nozzle, said annular chamber being positioned tocause said nozzle to expand outwardly when said sleeve is expandedthereby removing ice from the exterior thereof.

10. A sand delivery nozzle assembly comprising a resilient sleevemember, a nozzle member attached to said sleeve member, a rigid guidemember disposed about said sleevemember, a hose coupling member securedto one end of said guide member, said hose coupling member having anannular portion of reduced outer diameter at its free end to receive afolded over portion of said resilient sleeve member, said hose couplingmember further having a plurality of annular grooves formed in itsexterior surface, said grooves being positioned to receive and retain aresilient supply hose whenthe hose is firmly clamped thereabout, anannular sleeve portion of said nozle overlying the other end of saidguide member, said annular sleeve portion and said resilient sleevemember defining an annular chamber adjacent the nozzle end of said guidemember, said guide member comprising a plurality of grooves beneath saidsleeve portion, means sealingly clamping said sleeve portion to saidguide member whereby said annular sleeve portion is forced into saidgrooves, said nozzle member having an annular groove formed therein, ametal support ring disposed in said nozzle groove, a plurality ofannular spaced support members attached to the outer surface of saidsleevemember and engaging the inner surface of said guide member, saidsupport members and said nozzle support ring forming a plurality of flowconstrictions when said resilient sleeve member is expanded, and a ventconduit attached to said guide member relieving pressure from theexterior surface of said sleeve member whereby the application of apredetermined fluid pressure within said sleeve member expands the samebetween said support members such that flow obstructions are forcedthrough the constrictions and disintegrated for discharge through saidnozzle, said annular chamber being positioned to cause said nozzle toexpand outwardly when said sleeve is expanded thereby removing ice fromthe exterior thereof.

11. A device as described in claim 1' wherein said guide member iscomprised of a reinforced nonmetallic material.

References Cited by the Examiner UNITED STATES PATENTS 931,444 8/09Longmire. 1,579,891 4/26 Sandoz' 138-30 2,451,878 10/48 Savercool 291-462,528,801 11/50 Turner 291-46 2,608,032 8/52 Garver 51-11 2,631,875 3/53Blomberg 291-41 2,838,073 6/58 Mattia et a1. 138-30 3,009,647 11/61 Hait239-201 3,059,935 10/ 62 Vissers 291-44 LEO QUACKENBUSH, PrimaryExaminer.

- ARTHUR L. LA POINT, Examiner.

1. A SAND DELIVERY NOZZLE ASSEMBLY COMPRISING A RIGID GUIDE MEMBER, ANOZZLE MEMBER HAVING A RESILIENT SLEEVE MEMBER CONNECTED THERETO, SAIDSLEEVE MEMBER EXTENDING THROUGH SAID GUIDE MEMBER IN SPACED RELATION TOFORM AN ANNULAR CHAMBER THEREBETWEEN, FIRST FASTENING MEANS SEALINGLYSECURING THE END OF SAID SLEEVE REMOTE FROM SAID NOZZLE MEMBER TO SAIDGUIDE MEMBER AND A SUPPLY CONDUIT, AND SECOND FASTENING MEANS SEALINGLYSECURING SAID NOZZLE TO SAID GUIDE MEMBER SO THAT SAID RESILIENT SLEEVEMEMBER MAY BE EXPANDED TO DISLODGE FLOW OBSTRUCTING PARTICLES FROMWITHIN SAID SLEEVE.